Zion National Park Tour Guide Book: Your Personal Tour Guide For Zion Travel Adventure! (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9781441484635)

Zion Welcome to Zion, a land of sheer cliffs, ancient sand dunes, amazing vistas, and verdant garden alcoves. How did Zion come to be named Zion? Pioneer Isaac Behunin, leafing through the Book of Isaiah one evening, was struck by the way the setting sun's last ruddy light hit Red Arch Mountain. The name came to him by epiphany as he skimmed through Isaiah chapter 2 verse 3: "And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up the mountain of the Lord ... and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law." Mormon pioneers believed that Zion meant "sanctuary" and its rugged beauty was proof that God wanted them to settle there. However, in the early 1900's, visiting photographers, artists, and a surveyor named Leo Snow argued that Zion was far too beautiful to keep secret from the rest of the world. In 1909, President Howard Taft elevated Zion to national monument status under the Paiute name Mukuntuweap, meaning "straight canyon." However, like the Paiute American Indians themselves, the name, which had existed here for over 800 years, was already fading from the region. In 1919, when the United States Congress upgraded Mukuntuweap from monument to national park status, they renamed it "Zion" at the urging of the new Utahans. Now about 2.5 million pilgrims from around the world are drawn here each year. Some come to gaze in awe at the majesty of Zion's grandeur with pedestals of stone so tall and massive they seem to support the sky. Rock climbers pit their muscle against these mighty walls, inching upward on ascents that can last days. Geologists work in the opposite direction. Descending the walls and tracking changes in the rock, they can almost travel back through time, learning how our planet works by understanding the changes it has undergone. Others come to celebrate the diversity of life housed here. Reminiscent of Eden, Zion sustains an impressive species list of 800 plants, 75 mammals, 271 birds, 32 reptiles and amphibians, and 6 native fish. Zion is also a crown jewel of the National Park Service, a shining result of the dedication of men and women who strive to leave these works of nature clean, beautiful, and natural, for the enjoyment of future generations. As you begin your own Zion experience, be prepared as you will soon understand exactly the grandeur that overcame Isaac Behunin when he named this place, Zion.